Rule 1.6 COMMENT
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1 Honorable Barbara Rodriguez Mundell Presiding Judge 2 Superior Court of Arizona, Maricopa County 3 125 W. Washington St. Phoenix, Arizona 85003 4 (602) 506-6130 5 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ARIZONA 6 In the Matter of: ) Supreme Court No. R-06-0016 7 ) ) COMMENT OF THE MARICOPA 8 PETITION TO AMEND RULE 1.6 OF THE ) COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT IN ARIZONA RULES OF CRIMINAL ) 9 SUPPORT OF THE PETITION TO PROCEDURE ) AMEND RULE 1.6 ) 10 ) 11 The Presiding Judge of the Superior Court in Maricopa County files the following 12 comment pursuant to Rule 28, Arizona Rules of the Supreme Court, in support of 13 Petition R-06-0016, concerning amendments to Rule 1.6, Ariz.R.Crim.Proc., relating to 14 allowing appearance videoconferencing for initial appearances, arraignments and some 15 other hearings. 16 The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors recently authorized the expenditure 17 of $359 million dollars to build a state-of-the-art criminal court building that is planned to 18 contain 32 courtrooms and space for victims, police officers, juror assembly, probation 19 intake, court interpreters and provider agencies such as TASC. The completion date is 20 estimated to be approximately 4 years from now, sometime in the year 2011. 21 To plan, design and make the most efficient use of this new space, as well as our 22 other court buildings, and to preserve and make the best use of taxpayer resources, the 23 Superior Court in Maricopa ...
Voir
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Honorable Barbara Rodriguez Mundell
Presiding Judge
Superior Court of Arizona, Maricopa County
125 W. Washington St.
Phoenix, Arizona 85003
(602) 506-6130
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ARIZONA
In the Matter of:
PETITION TO AMEND RULE 1.6 OF THE
ARIZONA RULES OF CRIMINAL
PROCEDURE
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Supreme Court No. R-06-0016
COMMENT OF THE MARICOPA
COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT IN
SUPPORT OF THE PETITION TO
AMEND RULE 1.6
The Presiding Judge of the Superior Court in Maricopa County files the following
comment pursuant to Rule 28, Arizona Rules of the Supreme Court, in support of
Petition R-06-0016, concerning amendments to Rule 1.6, Ariz.R.Crim.Proc., relating to
allowing appearance videoconferencing for initial appearances, arraignments and some
other hearings.
The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors recently authorized the expenditure
of $359 million dollars to build a state-of-the-art criminal court building that is planned to
contain 32 courtrooms and space for victims, police officers, juror assembly, probation
intake, court interpreters and provider agencies such as TASC. The completion date is
estimated to be approximately 4 years from now, sometime in the year 2011.
To plan, design and make the most efficient use of this new space, as well as our
other court buildings, and to preserve and make the best use of taxpayer resources, the
Superior Court in Maricopa County would like to expand the use of videoconferencing in
appropriate proceedings, as requested by the Pima County Attorney.
Use of videoconferencing in criminal proceedings is a tested and efficient
procedure that has been used in many other states and counties. The California
Legislature first permitted video arraignments in 1983 in order to reduce the cost of
prisoner transport, eliminate security problems, minimize pre-arraignment detention time
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and costs, and “to eliminate defendant’s discomfort in being shackled and spending
long periods in court holding cells.” Judicial Council of California, “Report to the
Legislature on Video Arraignment Projects,” December 1991, p. 1 (Appendix A). South
Carolina, Orange County Florida, Oklahoma, and New Mexico are among the states
that allow videoconferencing at initial appearances. King County Washington permits
videoconference proceedings at preliminary appearances, arraignments, bail hearings,
and trial settings. The Illinois Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit allows
criminal proceedings by way of closed circuit television at “presentments of felonies”;
bond hearings; and preliminary hearings and sentencing hearings where the defendant
has waived the right to personally appear in court. Wisconsin has used
videoconferencing for many types of criminal proceedings, including:
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Initial appearance;
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Waiver of preliminary examination, competency hearing or jury trial;
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Motions for extension of time;
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Arraignment if the defendant intends to plead not guilty or refuse to plead;
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Setting, review or modification of bail or other conditions of release;
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Motions for severance or consolidation;
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Motions for testing physical evidence
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Motions for protective orders;
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Motions directed to the sufficiency of the complaint;
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Motions supporting the issuance of a warrant for arrest or search;
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Motions in limine;
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Motions to postpone;
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Attendance at court proceedings via videoconferencing for victims who are
incarcerated.
See Bridging the Distance; Implementing Videoconferencing in Wisconsin, Wisconsin
Supreme Court Policy and Planning Advisory Committee, 2005, updated 8/22/06
(
http://www.wicourts.gov/about/committees/ppacvidonf.htm
). Some federal district
courts have begun to use videoconferencing for prisoners’ civil lawsuits.
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The benefits and cost savings of allowing videoconferenced court proceedings
are many and include:
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Improving timely case disposition and compliance with Rule 8,
Ariz.R.Crim.Proc by eliminating continuances because inmates were not brought
to court on time and reducing court delays while waiting for arrival of inmates;
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Saving prisoner transportation time and costs, including use of vehicles,
personnel and fuel;
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Improving courthouse security;
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Reducing risk management liability for incidents that may otherwise occur
during transport and in court holding cells or elsewhere in the courthouse;
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Reducing personnel costs;
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Increasing personnel productivity and case processing efficiency by improving
the availability of defendants;
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Reducing of average length of stay in county jail by releasing eligible inmates
quicker after court hearings.
In order to increase safety and efficiency in our courthouses and to save financial
resources that could be invested in programs to improve the criminal justice system, I
urge the Supreme Court to adopt the proposed changes to Rule 1.6, Ariz.R.Crim.Proc.
Respectfully submitted this 18
th
day of May, 2007.
Honorable Barbara Rodriguez Mundell
Presiding Judge
Superior Court of Arizona, Maricopa County
